Who Was the First to Score Perfect 800 in GMAT – Big Myth Busted?

Robert McNamara, former Secretary of Defense, United States, is widely believed to be the first person to score the perfect 800 in GMAT. If you Google ‘Robert McNamara GMAT 800’, you’ll find several articles and forums supporting this.

Is this true, though?

Or, is this just a folklore being passed on year after year.

The facts

From the timeline below, it seems his 800 isn’t a fact because he completed his MBA before GMAT even existed, and GMAT is a requirement for admission to MBA programs: